A gift from the wood work shop

[David LaFerney]

Not at all bushcrafty, but I suppose that woodworking is a traditional craft. Anyway - just finishing (literally) this simple cherry wood side table for my Wife's Christmas present. It will replace a rather battered one she has been using next to her favorite chair.

I favor this kind of project - big enough to be engaging and enjoyable, but not so big as to seem never ending. Cherry is my favorite wood to work with (for furniture and cabinets) because it's dimensionally stable, hard enough to be durable, and not too hard to work with - it also finishes to a lovely honey color without any stain. I made this out of lumber that I had on hand and it pretty much wiped out my stock of cherry which is why the panels are so poorly matched and some (relatively) white sapwood was used, but I still think it came out pretty good. I hope she likes it.

 

[Robson Valley]

Looks good, I really like the finish and warmth of solid wood. ". . . but not so big as to seem never ending." Never better said.

 

[Toddy]

That is a beautiful gift I'm sure she will be delighted with it, especially something that she will use every day.

I have hand made-for-me pieces of furniture, and I treasure them

M

 

[Goatboy]

That's a beautiful present for your good lady. Think she'll be very happy, not just on the day but for many years to come. And that wood will only improve with time.

Sent via smoke-signal from a woodland in Scotland.

 

[dwardo]

Lovely thing that and it will be admired for an age.

 

[dewi]

That is a fine looking table! Nicely done.

 

[Harvestman]

Cracking bit of work, and sure to please. Well done you.

 

[Muddypaws]

Stunning work! I'm sure she'll be very pleased with that.

 

[woodspirits]

very nice project and great workmanship, well done!

 

[crosslandkelly]

Very nice indeed.

 

[humdrum_hostage]

Not only did my better half say she would love to receive something like that for christmas but I would also love to be able to make something like that for her too.

Very nice work indeed!

 

[David LaFerney]

Thanks to everyone. I must say this is one of the most supportive communities I have ever experienced. Congratulations to you all for that.

Merry Christmas!

 

[DogRose]

A very nice table. What joints did you use for the shelf? More pics please

 

[David LaFerney]

The shelves are glued into mortises, but the top is merely attached with a 1 1/2" triangle molding on each end. It's patterned after an antique which is still very solid after 50 years or so of use - enough use that the top finish is worn completely down to bare wood. I'll take some more pictures if you are really interested - but it's really a very simple piece of work.

 

[forginhill]

Elegant! Very nice work....

 

[David LaFerney]

More pictures as promised:

Very simple construction. FYI it is approx 24" tall and the top is about 12"x24" If you are crafty and wanted to you could pretty much reproduce it from those measurements and the photos. The shelves are mortised into the legs and the top is attached as you see without any mortises, dowels or other fancy joinery - although if I wanted to do that I would just mortise the legs into the top and still use the triangle molding to strengthen the joint. You could leave out the sub-top in any scenario if you wanted to, but it makes it easier to accurately attach the legs to the top when they are not mortised in.

Merry Christmas

 

[richardhomer]

That looks stunning mate, She will be over the moon with that,
A great pace of work and skill

 

[DogRose]

Beautiful wood Thank you for the extra pictures and information.